Arizona's 2nd congressional district

Arizona's 2nd congressional district
Arizona's 2nd congressional district
	Arizona's 2nd congressional district since January 3, 2013.
Representative	Martha McSally; R–Tucson
Area	20,219 sq mi (52,370 km2)
Distribution	89% urban; 11% rural;
Population (2000)	641,329
Median household; income	42,432
Ethnicity	85.5% White; 14.2% Hispanic; 2.2% Native American; 2.2% Black; 1.7% Asian; 0% other;
Cook PVI	R+3

Arizona's 2nd congressional district is a congressional district located in the U.S. state of Arizona. It contains the southeastern corner of the state, including roughly two-thirds of Tucson.

After the 2012 census, the bulk of the Maricopa County portion of the old 2nd became the 8th District, while the new 2nd District took in most of the territory of the old 8th district.

One of the characters from House of Cards, Bob Birch, former Speaker of the House of representatives and the current Minority Leader, is depicted as being a congressman from this district.

District history

From 2003 to 2013, the district contained the northwestern corner of the state and most of the western suburbs of Phoenix as well as a small portion of the city itself. It consisted of all of Peoria (within the exception of the portion of that city within Yavapai County) and Surprise, most of Glendale and much of western Phoenix in Maricopa County, all of Mohave County, and the Hopi Nation in Navajo and Coconino counties. Despite the size and diversity of the district (it included nearly all of the northwestern portion of the state), over 90 percent of its population lived in the strongly conservative western suburbs of Phoenix (known as the West Valley), historically a fairly safe Republican area.

The odd shape of the district was indicative of the use of gerrymandering in its construction. The unusual division was not, however, drawn to favor politicians. Owing to historic tensions between the Hopi and the Navajo Native American tribes and since tribal boundary disputes are a federal matter, it was long believed inappropriate to include both tribes' reservations in the same congressional district.^[2] However, the Hopi reservation is completely surrounded by the Navajo reservation. In order to comply with current Arizona redistricting laws, some means of connection was required that avoided including large portions of Navajo land, hence the narrow riverine connection.

George W. Bush carried the district in 2004 with 61% of the vote. John McCain won the district in 2008 with 60.75% of the vote while Barack Obama received 38.07%.

During the Super Tuesday, February 5, 2008 Arizona Democratic Primary, the district was won by Hillary Clinton with 54.52% of the vote while Barack Obama received 35.62% and John Edwards took in 7.43%. In the Arizona Republican Primary, the 2nd District was won by favorite son John McCain with 49.51% while Mitt Romney received 29.51% and Mike Huckabee took in 10.46% of the vote in the district.

In the 2014 midterms, the district was the very last House of Representatives race to be decided, as the official recount began on December 1 due to Republican Martha McSally leading incumbent Democratic congressman Ron Barber by less than 200 votes.

History and demographics

Athabaskan-speaking Native Americans lived in this region long before the arrival of the Europeans who established the Arizona Territory. In the late 19th century, Apache chief Cochise and a band of Chiricahuas built their stronghold on the Dragoon range of mountains. The tribe would often ambush and rob passersby as an attempt to keep interlopers off their land. The presence of the tribe deterred the settlement of the area for far longer than the rest of the Arizona Territory. The district, containing a county now called by his name, developed when its varied and valuable resources were found in the 1870s. The discovery of silver mines in 1878 in the Tombstone district spurred much growth and investment in the area.

Geography

The district is covered by mountains and wide valleys. The district is high desert grasslands with elevations from 3500 to 6000 feet. Several mountain ranges run through the district with the highest peak in the Chiricahua Mountains at 9,796 feet. Southeast Arizona is at an ecological crossroads where habitats and species from the Sierra Madre of Mexico, the Rocky Mountains, and the Sonoran and Chihuahuan deserts can all be found. The abrupt rise of mountains from the surrounding grasslands creates unique habitats harboring rare species and communities of plants and animals. The area has a semi-arid climate with moderate winters and hot summers. Precipitation rarely exceeds one inch in any month other than July, August, and September, when high intensity, but short-lived monsoon storms can occur.

Main industries

Primary job fields of the people in the district include agriculture, ranching, livestock, mining, and tourism. The main irrigated crops are cotton, wheat, corn, grain, sorghum, alfalfa, hay, apples, peaches, cherries, grapes, pistachios, pecans, lettuce, chilis, and other vegetables. The area has a multitude of U-pick vegetable farms and orchards, including several organic farms. Greenhouse tomato and cucumber operations have been completed in the past few years with much success. In Cochise County there is the U.S. Army base Fort Huachuca and numerous military-industrial companies. In suburban and urban areas, Wal-Marts are the most abundant superstores.

Schools

Located within the district is Cochise College, a two-year college. The University of Arizona is within a couple miles of the district border, located in central Tucson. Approximately 2.8% of adults 25 and older have completed less than 9th grade; 5.5% have completed between 9th and 12th grade but have not received a diploma; 17.9% are high school graduates; 26.8% have some college but no degree; 7.5% have an associate degree; 26.1% have a bachelor's degree; and 13.5% have a graduate or professional degree.

Tourism and recreation

Tourism is an important industry as the district has numerous natural wonders, national forests, parks, and conservation areas. There are multiple caverns (including the renowned Kartchner Caverns) and canyons available for visitation. Hiking, camping, fishing, and boating can be found throughout the region. There are also Apache historical sites, war memorials, museums, tour trains, and mine tours. Golfing is popular, and there are multiple golf courses across the district.

Voting

Election results from presidential races
Year	Office	Results
2000	President	Bush 56 - 41%
2004	President	Bush 61 - 38%
2008	President	McCain 61 - 38%
2012	President	Romney 50 - 48%
2016	President	Trump 50 - 45%

List of representatives

Arizona transitioned from electing its members of the House from separate districts with the 1948 elections, after using a general ticket since gaining a second seat in the House with the 1940 Census.

Representative	Party	Term	Congress(es)	Electoral history	Geography and counties^[3]^[4]^[5]
Harold Patten	Democratic	January 3, 1949 – January 3, 1955	81 82 83	Retired.	All except Maricopa
Stewart Udall	Democratic	January 3, 1955 – January 21, 1961	84 85 86 87	Resigned to become U.S. Secretary of the Interior.
Vacant		January 21, 1961 – May 2, 1961	87
File:Morris Udall.jpg Mo Udall	Democratic	May 2, 1961 – January 3, 1963	87	First elected to finish his brother's term. Resigned for health reasons.
		January 3, 1963 – January 3, 1973	88 89 90 91 92		South Arizona, including Tucson: Cochise, Pima, Pinal, Santa Cruz, Yuma
		January 3, 1973 – January 3, 1983	93 94 95 96 97		Cochise, Pima, Santa Cruz, Maricopa (part), Pinal (part)
		January 3, 1983 – May 4, 1991	98 99 100 101 102		Southwest Arizona, including parts of Metro Phoenix and of Tucson: Maricopa (part), Pima (part), Pinal (part), Santa Cruz (part), Yuma (part)
Vacant		May 4, 1991 – October 3, 1991	102
Ed Pastor	Democratic	October 3, 1991 – January 3, 1993	102	First elected to finish Udall's term. Redistricted to the 4th district.
Ed Pastor	Democratic	January 3, 1993 – January 3, 2003	103 104 105 106 107		Southwest Arizona, including parts of Metro Phoenix and of Tucson: Yuma, Maricopa (part), Pima (part), Pinal (part)
Trent Franks	Republican	January 3, 2003 – January 3, 2013	108 109 110 111 112	First elected in 2002. Redistricted to the 8th district.	Parts of Metro Phoenix, extending to NW Arizona, plus the Hopi Reservation: Mohave, Coconino (part), La Paz (part), Maricopa (part), Navajo (part)
Ron Barber	Democratic	January 3, 2013 – January 3, 2015	113	Redistricted from the 8th district. Lost re-election.	Southeastern Arizona: Cochise, Pima (part)
Martha McSally	Republican	January 3, 2015 – Present	114	First elected in 2014.	Southeastern Arizona: Cochise, Pima (part)

Recent election results

2002

Arizona’s 2nd Congressional District House Election, 2002
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Trent Franks	100,359	59.92%
	Democratic	Randy Camacho	61,217	36.55%
	Libertarian	Edward Carlson	5,919	3.53%
Majority			39,142	23.37%
Total votes			167,502	100.00
	Republican hold

2004

Arizona’s 2nd Congressional District House Election, 2004
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Trent Franks*	165,260	59.17%
	Democratic	Randy Camacho	107,406	38.46%
	Libertarian	Powell Gammill	6,625	2.37%
Majority			57,854	20.71%
Total votes			279,303	100.00
	Republican hold

2006

Arizona’s 2nd Congressional District House Election, 2006
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Trent Franks*	135,150	58.62%
	Democratic	John Thrasher	89,671	38.89%
	Libertarian	Powell Gammill	5,734	2.49%
Majority			45,479	19.73%
Total votes			230,560	100.00
	Republican hold

2008

Arizona’s 2nd Congressional District House Election, 2008
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Trent Franks*	200,914	59.44%
	Democratic	John Thrasher	125,611	37.16%
	Libertarian	Powell Gammill	7,882	2.33%
	Green	William Crum	3,616	1.07%
Majority			75,303	22.28%
Total votes			338,023	100.00
	Republican hold

2010

Arizona’s 2nd Congressional District House Election, 2010
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Trent Franks*	173,173	64.89%
	Democratic	John Thrasher	82,891	31.06%
	Libertarian	Powell Gammill	10,820	4.05%
Majority			90,282	33.83%
Total votes			266,884	100.00
	Republican hold

2012

Arizona’s 2nd Congressional District House Election, 2012
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Ron Barber*	147,338	50%
	Republican	Martha McSally	144,884	50%
	Write-In	Write-ins	57	0.02%
Majority			2,454	0.84%
Total votes			292,279	100.00
	Democratic gain from Republican

2014

Arizona’s 2nd Congressional District House Election, 2014
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Martha McSally	109,704	50%
	Democratic	Ron Barber *	109,583	50%
	Write-In	Write-ins	1,007	0.46%
Majority			121	0.0005%
Total votes			220,254	100.00%
	Republican gain from Democratic

Living former Members

As of April 2015^[update], there are three former members of the U.S. House of Representatives from Arizona's 2nd congressional district that are currently living.

Representative	Term in office	Date of birth (and age)
Ed Pastor	1991 - 2003	(1943-06-28) June 28, 1943 (age 81)
Trent Franks	2003 - 2013	(1957-06-19) June 19, 1957 (age 67)
Ron Barber	2013 - 2015	(1945-08-25) August 25, 1945 (age 79)

References

^ "Partisan Voting Index Districts of the 113th Congress: 2004 & 2008" (PDF). The Cook Political Report. 2012. Retrieved January 10, 2013.
^ Pitzi, Mary Jo, 2011. Navajos seek tribal-dominated district in Arizona. Arizona Republic, Published September 16, 2011. Retrieved November 3, 2011.
^ Martis, Kenneth C., The Historical Atlas of United States Congressional Districts, 1789-1983. New York: Macmillan Publishing, 1982.
^ Martis, Kenneth C., The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress, 1789-1989. New York: Macmillan Publishing, 1989.
^ Congressional Directory: Browse 105th Congress

External links

Maps of Congressional Districts first in effect for the 2002 election
Tentative Final Congressional Maps for the 2012 election
Demographic data from census.gov
2004 Election data from CNN.com
2002 Election data from CBSNews.com
2000 Election data from CNN.com
1998 Election data from CNN.com
full listing of candidates, via Arizona Secretary of State's office

31°54′59″N 109°56′19″W / 31.91639°N 109.93861°W / 31.91639; -109.93861

[Cook-1] "Partisan Voting Index Districts of the 113th Congress: 2004 & 2008" (PDF). The Cook Political Report. 2012. Retrieved January 10, 2013.

[2] Pitzi, Mary Jo, 2011. Navajos seek tribal-dominated district in Arizona. Arizona Republic, Published September 16, 2011. Retrieved November 3, 2011.

[3] Martis, Kenneth C., The Historical Atlas of United States Congressional Districts, 1789-1983. New York: Macmillan Publishing, 1982.

[4] Martis, Kenneth C., The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress, 1789-1989. New York: Macmillan Publishing, 1989.

[5] Congressional Directory: Browse 105th Congress

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